Pages

Thursday, April 3, 2014

Spicy Broccolini Tempura

Often, tempura is served with a variety of vegetables including yam, sweet potato, green beans, carrots, broccoli and onions. It is then served with a mild tempura sauce sometimes flavored with ginger. Mixed Vegetable Tempura is one of my favorite dishes at Japanese restaurants, but for the home I usually prefer using one or two of my favorite vegetables and give the dipping sauce a spicy kick which you might encounter with Korean style tempura.

In this recipe, I use broccolini because its mild flavor goes great with a spicy dip made with tempura sauce, sugar and dried red chili pepper flakes. However, any or all of the vegetables mentioned above could work with this sauce.

In a medium bowl, combine the tempura mix with 1/2 Cup ice cold water. Whisk the tempura mix until it turns into a smooth paste. Heat the vegetable oil over medium high heat in a medium skillet (oil should be about 1/2 inch deep). In small batches, dip the broccolini into the tempura mix to coat lightly with the paste. Place the coated broccolini into the hot oil and fry for about 1 minute on each side or until the mix turns a golden light brown color (tongs or chopsticks work best for turning the broccolini in the hot oil). Transfer the tempura broccolini onto a plate lined with paper towel a cookie rack to cool. Repeat the process until all the broccolini is cooked.

In a small sauce pan, combine the tempura sauce, brown sugar, dried red chili peppers, cornstarch and 1 cup water. Stirring occasionally, bring the ingredients to a boil and simmer for 1 minute. The sauce will thicken with the cornstarch. Pour the dipping sauce into a bowl.

Serve the tempura broccolini with the spicy sauce on the side. If preferred, the sauce can also be poured directly onto the vegetables. Serve and Enjoy.